The meat-producing industry is seeing heavier carcasses than before. As a result of the heavier carcasses, the meat-producing industry, i.e. fabricators, experiences increased costs associated with the processing of the increased-size carcass and the manufacturing of meat products therefrom, including increased labor, shipping, and handling.
For example, with increasing live swine weights, the meat-producing industry is seeing heavier swine carcasses. In the past, the average live weight was approximately 250-270 pounds, now at time of slaughter, swine weigh about 285-300 pounds on average. Increased swine weight directly correlates to an increase in the primal and sub-primal size.
Consumers are generally not interested in buying larger portion sizes, nor are consumers interested in consuming unrecognizable meat products. Efforts to maintain recognizable meat products for consumers and portion sizes that consumers are willing to buy cause the fabricators to not utilize the carcass as fully and cost-effectively, e.g. discarding of portions of meat for use in the lesser-valued trim in order to fabricate the more traditional products and experience more decreasing drop credits values. Fabricators also experience increased costs associated with the manufacture of certain labor-intensive meat products and must find ways to offset the higher-cost manufacture of certain meat products.